Improvement in car-couplings



JAMES H. AKIN. Improvement in Car Couplings N0. 124,310; I PatentedMarch 5,1872.

' WITNESSES.

UNITED JAMES H. AKIN, OF IVYANDOTTE (llTY, KANSAS.

IMPROVEMENTIN CAR-COUPLINGS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 124,310, dated March 5,1872.

To whom it may concern:

v Be it known that 1, JAMES H. AKIN, of Wyandotte city, in the county ofWyandotte and State of Kansas, have made certain Improvements inOar-Couplers; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full,clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of thesame, reference being had to the annexed drawing, forming part of thisspecification, and to the letters and figures of reference markedthereon.

Figure 1 of the drawing represents a top view of my car-coupler. Fig. 2is a vertical longitudinal section, and Figs. 3 and 4 are details.

This invention has relation to means for coupling and uncoupling cars;and it consists in the construction and novel arrangement of thedraw-head with its recessed journal-seats and the weighted removablepivoted pins, adapted to operate in connection with a link, having themetal massed in unequal quantities at its ends, all as hereinafterdescribed.

In the accompanying drawing, the letter A designates the draw-head,which may have the usual bell-mouth form. This draw-head is slotted at aa in its upper and lower sides for the passage of the pin. The front andside walls of these slots are vertical, but the rear walls are hollowedout inside the draw-head in a beveled or shelving manner at b b. By thismeans in the upper wall a recess is provided for the reception of thebody of the pin when it is thrown up by the stroke of the link, and inthe lower wall allowance is made for the sweep of the toe of the pin,while the upper and lower inside surfaces of the draw-head appin,consisting of a body, 6, and toe (l. The forward and lateral walls ofthe pin are vertical and plane, to correspond with the forward andlateral walls of the slots of the draw-head. The rear wall is notchedout underneath, forming a shoulder under the rear portion of the body 6.The toe (1 extends downward from the front portion of the body, which isset well back of the trunnions n 12 extending out from its side, andbalances the pin, so that when it hangs freely its front wall willassume the perpendicular. A ring, k, is formed at the rear and uppercorner of the body of the pin for the attachment of an operating-rope. Ashoulder, c, is formed under the rear portion of the ring, which, whenthe pin is down, rests on the rear edge of the wall of the upper slot.The upper portion of the front wall of the body of the pin is curved toadmit of the pivotal motion without opening the slot at this point. Therear wall 2 of the toe of the pin is made slightly concave or beveledoutward and downward, in order that the draft may cause the link to rideupward on the pin, thus tending to keep the latter down to its seat. Drepresents the link. This is an ordinary slot-link, with the metalmassed at one end in a plate form at m. This link is secured in thedrawhead by raising the pin vertically, and introducing the large end ofthe link into the bellmouth. The pin will then fall into place forwardof the thick end m of the link, and will secure the same, so that therewill be little or no longitudinal movement of the link in thisdraw-head. In the coupling operation, the small end of the link entersthe opposite draw-head, carrying back the toe of the pin until it israised sufficiently for the link to pass under. The pin then fallsforward, securing the link. In uncoupling, if the link is fully out, sothat there is not distance for the pin to swing back, the pin may beraised vertically; but in ordinary cases it will be only necessary toswing the toe of the pin back by pulling on the operating-rope at tachedat the rear of the body of the pin to the ringck. The solid end. of thelink is made heavy enough to counterbalance the weight forward of thepin, so that the link will always project horizontally in the properdirection to enter the mouth of the opposite draw-head.

I claim- The combination, with the draw-head A, provided with the slotsto a and journal-seats c, of the counterbalanced link D and theremovable weighted pin B, having the trunnions n, ring k, and toe d,beveled down- Ward and outward on its rear face, all constructed andarranged substantially as shown and described.

JAMES H. AKIN.

Witnesses:

H. W. 000K, L. F. HOLLINGSWORTH.

